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The Supreme Court on Monday refused to transfer the ongoing disproportionate assets case against former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister (CM) YS Jagan Mohan Reddy from Hyderabad to a location outside Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
The Court was hearing a plea filed by Andhra Pradesh Deputy Speaker Raghu Rama Krishna Raju of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), who sought the transfer of the case, alleging that the state machinery was being manipulated in favor of the former CM. A bench comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma observed that transferring the matter was unwarranted since the High Court is monitoring the case before the concerned CBI court, which has been directed to conduct hearings on a day-to-day basis. Accordingly, the Court dismissed the plea seeking the transfer of the case against Reddy. The petition was initially filed in 2023 by Raju, who was then a Member of Parliament (MP) representing the YSR Congress Party. The plea was directed against his party leader and former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. However, in March 2024, Raju switched parties and joined the TDP. The plea alleged that the former CM had illegally amassed wealth amounting to Rs 40,000 crores and ensured that the criminal trials against him remained dormant, with no significant progress. "Shockingly, the state machinery has been more than happy to act as silent spectators to this abuse of the judicial process, turning criminal trials into friendly matches between the accused and the prosecution," the plea stated. The petitioner sought the transfer of the case, which is currently pending before the Special Judge for CBI Cases in Hyderabad, to a court of equal and competent jurisdiction in any other city. The Supreme Court, however, dismissed the plea, reiterating that transferring the case against Reddy was unnecessary. (ANI)
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